This invention relates generally to a device for connecting the ski tips on a pair of snow skis for beginning skiers, older skiers, or skiers without well developed leg strength and control, and, more particularly, this invention is directed to a flexible ski tip connector having a pair of lever clamps connected by a flexible connector which force the skis into a snowplow position and which are easily attachable and removable from the skis.
Beginning snow skiers often have difficulty controlling their skis to keep the tips of their skis together. Without adequate control of the skis when they encounter snow, control that comes from experience, the right and left ski tends to go in different directions for the skier.
Typically, the skis open up to the spread-out position. The beginning skier lacks the leg strength to pull the skis together. Falls, splits and spills may result. The skis may also invariably separate, cross or run one ahead of the other, again causing the beginner to fall.
Although ski teaching styles vary from instructor to instructor and from one ski slope to another, most skiers will begin by mastering the snowplow, or wedge. The beginning skier is taught to “snowplow” to permit the student to acquire a high degree of control of their skis early in their instruction.
In the snowplow position, the skier must keep the tips of his skis together while spreading out the tails of the skis to form an approximate V position. The tip of the V formed by the tip of the skis points down the slope. The skier then bends his or her knees forward and slightly inward causing the skis to ride on their inside edges (edging), thus digging into the snow on the slope.
The angle of the skis is used to control the skier's speed, even to bring the skier to a stop. A wider angle with the tails of the skis relatively further apart than the tips will traverse the slope much more slowly than a narrower angle.
By varying the amount of edging, the skier can control the speed and control the turns down the slope. When beginners have learned the snowplow position and how to control their speed down the slope, they can then process on to more advanced positions and types of skiing.
Beginning snow skiers often have difficulty creating a wedge shape with their skis. They have difficulty creating the shape and they also have a hard time holding the shape once they start moving down the slope.
The beginning skier's attention is often devoted primarily to the problem of staying upright, rather than to the refinement of aligning the skis in snowplow.
The above snowplow movements require an amount of leg strength and stamina. A beginning skier, particularly a child, does not initially possess the necessary strength and stamina to successfully ski. A child skier may not have the physical development yet to co-ordinate the opposing motions of skiing. This applies not just to beginning skiers, but also older skiers, or skiers without well developed leg strength and control.
It is the principal object of this invention to provide a flexible ski tip connector which will automatically keep the ski tips together to make and maintain the snowplow position and further provide a means for the instructor to control the speed of a skier down a slope.
Over the years, several inventions have been proposed to keep ski tips together to force the skier into the snowplow position. However, each of these inventions has the same problems over and over again.
For a ski tip connector to be effective to form the perfect wedge, it must be compact, easy to secure to the skis, and easy to use in cold weather by a skier wearing mittens or gloves. Moreover, it must allow the skis to be easily connected or disconnected from each other, require no modification of the ski, do no damage to the ski, and be inexpensive.
The Edgie Wedgie product has a flexible curved rubber tube with two screw clamps. The first screw clamp is at one end of the tube and the second screw clamp is at the other end of the tube. The screw clamps are parallel with the curved tube to form a curved line.
The screw clamps are screwed to the ski tips. The Edgie Wedgie forces the ski tips and skis into a wedge shape.
A similar device to the Edgie Wedgie is found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,299 for a snowplow skiing position device. The device has a flexible strap between two clamps. The clamps can be C-clamps or a rubber notched clamp, which attach to the outside edge of the ski tips. The strap has a grommet in the middle so an instructor can insert his or her ski pole in the grommet to slow down the skier.
The use of screw clamps presents several major problems with ski tip devices.
A screw clamp has a single point of contact with the ski tip. The skis can shift laterally when held by a screw clamp because there is only that one point of contact. The clamps tend to work loose and fall off the ski tips due to vibration, cold weather and the single point of contact.
Screw clamps tend to gouge and damage the ski itself at the ski tip.
The protruding screw of the screw clamp sticks up above the ski tip and is dangerous if the skier falls forward.
The screw on a screw clamp is difficult to turn if the skier is wearing gloves or mittens. There is always a 50/50 chance with a screw clamp that the skier will tune the screw the wrong way, tightening the screw when the skier wants to loosen and release the screw, or loosening and releasing the screw when the skier wants to tighten the screw.
Sleeves and screw clamps are used in U.S. Pending Patent Application 20090039635 for a ski tip connector. This connector has a latex tube with two closed sleeves. A sleeve is at each end of the tube. The closed sleeve has a thumbscrew. A sleeve is slipped over the ski tip and held in place by tightening the thumbscrew. The latex tubing keeps the skis in a wedge shape. The tubing can have a hook attached to one sleeve so the ski tip connector tubing can be unhooked with the sleeves still fastened to the ski tips.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,828,288 has a ski tip linking device. The device has two closed attachment devices (or sleeves) which each fit snugly over a ski tip. A screw clamp holds the sleeves to the ski tip.
The patent has a different connector though. Each attachment device has a rigid arm extending forward at a 45 degree angle. The two arms are attached at a ball and cup joint.
Past devices require that various connectors be clamped, screwed or glued to the skis. Some require permanent attachment to the skis.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,357,714 has plates screwed to the upper surfaces of two water skis. Each plate has a ball and socket joint extending upward. The ball joints are connected by a rigid spring between the skis. The spring and ball and socket joints keep the skis together to form a wedge or in parallel. The plates screwed into the skis are permanent or very difficult to remove.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,992,022 has hook and eyelet rods to keep the skis in a snowplow position. A metal clamp fits around a ski and is held in position by a screw. The first screw metal clamp on one ski has a lateral metal rod with a hook. The second screw metal clamp on the other ski has a lateral metal hook with an eyelet. The hook fits within the eyelet to hold the skis locked into a snowplow position.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,936,603 has a rigid bar between two flexible members for linking ski tips. Each ski tip has a flexible member extending up from the ski with the bar held between the two ski tip members. The members are screwed into the ski. The rigid bar and flexible members allow the skis to remain in snowplow position while the skis are used in downhill or in turns.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,531,480 has a screw clamp holding a ball and socket joint to each ski tip. A connecting rod extends between the two ball and socket joints on the ski tips. The ski tips can move independently of each other but maintain a fixed distance apart. The ball and socket joint allows the skis to move up-and-down and back-and-forth relative to each other within the fixed distance. The skis can be parallel or form a wedge.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,264,663 uses a hollow metal strut and a pair of suction cups to hold water skis parallel. One suction cup is attached to each water ski on the main ski body. The suction cups need a flat surface to adhere. The suction cups have upstanding bosses, which hold the metal strut between the suction cups and skis.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a ski tip connecting device that does not have a difficult-to-use, ski damaging, and dangerous screw clamp.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a ski tip connecting device that holds the ski tips to easily form a snowplow for the skier; that is easy to use; that is readily attachable and quickly detachable, even when wearing mittens or gloves; and is flexible and resilient to minimize the shocks of skiing through snow.